1

The

V. Sarajishvili

Tbilisi State

Conservatoire

International

Research

Center for

Traditional

Polyphony

B U L L E T I N

Tbilisi. June, 2013

#14

The News Ethnomusicological life in Georgia

For Dimitri Araqishvilis Jubilee

Foreign Ethnomusicologists

Izaly Zemtsovsky

Foreign musical folklore

The Chaotic Culture of Marrakech's Djemaa el

Fna

Georgian Childrens Folk Ensembles

Martve, Mdzlevari, Erkvani,

Lasharela

Expedition Diary

Expedition in Zemo Achara

(Keda District)

One foreign folk ensemble

The Traditional Singing Group

Saucjas from Latvia

Beneficents of Georgian Song

The Erkomaishvilis

Foreigners on Georgian Folklore

Peter Gold Georgian Folk Music from

Turkey

The Centres of Georgian Science and Culture

Simon Janashia State Museum of Georgia

Foreign Performers of

Georgian Folk Song

Ensemble Darbazi from Canada

Old Press Pages

Kakhi Rosebashvili I Could not Have Lived

Without this Song

Comment on the book:

Echoes from Georgia

History of One Song

Urmuli

2

The news

Ethnomusicological life in Georgia

(January-June, 2013)

18.04.2013 Information on Georgias ethnomu-

sicological life was published in the last volume of the

ICTM (International Council of Traditional Music of

UNESCO) bulletin under the headline National and

Regional Representation Report. In general the afore-

mentioned headline includes ethnomusicological news

of various countries and regions of the world (see

www.ictmusic.org, Bulletin of the ICTM vol.122-April

2013, pp.44-50)

Festivals and Conferences

12.03.2013 Ensemble Basiani participated in the

Concerts of Lent dedicated to Alexandre Nevskys

300th anniversary at the Grand Hall of St. Petersburg

Academic Philharmonic Society, as part of the festival

Academy of Orthodox Music.

20-23.03.2013 Nino Makharadze, Doctor of Musi-

cology and Lolita Surmanidze, specialist of Batumi Art

University participated in the 19th Symposium of the

ICTM Study Group on Folk Musical Instruments in

Bamberg, Germany.

1-9.04.2013 The Meeting of UNESCO Intangible

Cultural Heritage Council was held in Paris, among the

participants was Prof. Rusudan Tsurtsumia, Director of

the International Research Centre for Traditional

Polyphony.

6-7.04.2013 Ensemble Riho performed in a solo

concert at La Maison des Cultures du Mond as part of

the 17th Festival de LImaginaire in Paris.

19.04.2013 4th International Conference-Concert of

Musicology Students was held at the Museum of Tbilisi

State Conservatoire.

20-25.05.2013 Batumi hosted International Festival of

the 21st Century Music.

24.05.2013 Georgian Folk Music Department of

Tbilisi State Conservatoire held the conference and

concert of Young Ethnomusicologits dedicated to

Dimitri Araqishvilis 140th Anniversary.

30.05.2013 The Giorgi Mtatsmindeli High School of

Church Chant and the Centre of Church Chant of the

Georgian Patriarchy held a scientific conference on the

theme tradition, canonics, performance at Tbilisi

State Conservatoire.

31.05.2013 _ Students scientific society of Tbilisi State Conservatoire held the annual scientific Conference.

Compact Discs, Work-shops, Lectures, etc.

06.01. 2013 Ensemble Shavnabada released a CD

for learning Georgian Chant (Vespers)

20-21.05.2013 Professor Rob Simms of York

University (Canada) delivered two lectures at Tbilisi

State Conservatoire as organized by the IRCTP: 1.

Poetics of Iranian Song and Muhammad Reza

Shajarians Songs historical, political, poetic

aspects, narrative performance, balance of the

individual and collective in tradition, interrelation

between tradition and contemporaneity, improvisa-

tional performance of music; 2. West African instru-

mental Polyphony structure of the percussion

instruments of the Mande people of Ghana,

Senegambia, Guinnea and Mali, transmission from

generation to generation, its cultural context and

polyphonic aspects of Kora- Harplute of the Mande

people. The attention was focused on new methods

and approaches of ethnomusicological study. Expeditions

April, 2013 Georgian Folk Music Department of

Tbilisi State Conservatoire organized folk-music-

expedition in Achara, headed by Teona Rukhadze a

Doctoral student of the Department; other members of

the expedition were: Magistracy students of the

Department Teona Lomsadze and Sopo Kotrikadze. Concert Tours 7-15.01.2013 Ensemble Rustavi together with

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan performed in

concerts at the Culture Palace Istana Budaya in

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

16-20.01.2013 Ensemble Rustavi held concerts in

St. Petersburg and Novgorod.

29.02-4.02.2013 Ensemble Rustavi was on a

concert tour in Sardinia.

16-25.02.2013 Ensemble Rustavi and Cloud Gate

Dance Theatre of Taiwan participated in Taiwan

International Festival of Arts, at the National Theatre

in Taipei, Taiwan.

3-12.04.2013 Ensemble Rustavi held solo concerts

at Crocus City Hall, Moscow.

19-20.05.2013 Ensemble Me Rustveli held solo

concerts in Krivoy Rog, Ukraine.

1.06.2013 Ensembles Tutarchela and Me Rustveli held a solo concert in Ijevan, Armenia

Concerts and Evenings

20.01.2013 A song and chant concert was held at the

Recital Hall of Tbilisi State Conservatoire with the

participation of Tbilisi-based folk ensembles.

02.02.2013 Festive Liturgy was held at St. Ekvtime

Church in the village of Kiketi dedicated to St.

Ekvtime Confessors Day with the participation of

various folk ensembles and choirs of chanters:

Aghsavali, Basiani, Didgori, Ialoni and

childrens choir from Gori.

http://www.ictmusic.org/publications/bulletin-ictmhttp://www.ictmusic.org/publications/bulletin-ictmhttp://www.ictmusic.org/

3

10.03.2013 Ensemble Didgori performed in a solo

concert as part of the project My Beloved Country at

the residence of Isaia Metropiltan of Nikozi and

Tskhinvali, in the village of Nikozi.

10.05.2013 Ensemble Didgori held a concert at

Tbilisi Samepo Ubnis Teatri as part of Tbilisi Week of

Music.

11.05. 2013 Ensemble Didgori participated in the

Opening concert of New Wine Festival, at Tbilisi

Ethnographical Museum.

24. 05.2013 Evening of Georgian traditional music

dedicated to Georgias Independence Day was held at

Bolnisi House of Culture, with the participation of local

and visiting collectives and individual performers.

26.05.2013 Concert dedicated to Georgias Inde-

pendence Day was held at the central square of Rustavi

with the participation of Tutarchela and Me

Rustveli.

09.06.2013 Ensemble Shavnabada held a solo

concert at the Grand Hall of Tbilisi State Conservatoire. 15.06.2013 Ensemble Tutarchela performed in the solo concert From the Alps to the Caucasus at Rustavi

Drama Theatre.

18.06.2013 Presentation-Concert of the CD 100 Folk Songs and Chants with the participation of

ensemble Basiani was held at the Grand Hall of

Tbilisi State Conservatoire.

State Folklore Centre of Georgia realized a number

of interesting projects (for more details visit

www.folk.ge)

Prepared by Maka Khardziani

For Dimitri Araqishvilis Jubilee

(1873-1953)

Dimitri Araqishvili

2013 is Dimitri Araqishvilis jubilee year- 140

th anniversary from his birth and 60 years from his

death, but the conclusions that the scholar made half a

century ago are still actual, this is why Araqishvilis

works serve as the basis for todays Georgian

ethnomusicologists. Georgian Folk Music Department

of Tbilisi State Conservatoire recently held the

Conference of Young Ethnomusicologists dedicated to

the anniversary of the eminent scholar. The

Conference papers discussed the expedition material

recorded by Araqishvili in various parts of Georgia

and comments to them. This invaluable material will

help researchers make interesting and significant

conclusions.

One of the founders of Georgian professional

music, composer, musicologist-ethnographer, pedago-

gue, public figure, Peoples Artist if Georgia (1929),

academician of the Georgian Academy of Sciences

(1950), Laureate of the USSR State Prize (1950)

Dimitri Araqishvili was born in Vladikavkaz in 1873.

He spent his youth in North Caucasus Armavir and

Ekaterinograd (modern day Krasnodar).

Lado Aghniashvilis Georgian Choir (directed

by J. Ratil), to which the future scholar first listened in

Armavir in 1890, gave arousal to Araqishvilis love to

music. In 1894-1901 he studied at Music Drama

School of Moscow Philharmonic Society; he finished

the school with merits under the supervision of A.

Ilinsky (composition), S. Kruglikov (theory subjects)

and V. Kess (conducting).

In Moscow (1894-1918) Araqishvili became

friends with renowned Russain musicians and scholars

(S. Taneev, A. Kastalsky, M. Ippolitov-Ivanov,

S. Paskhalov and M. Piatnitsky). His interest to folk

music determined his closeness to Music-Ethno-

graphic Commission of Moscow University. On the

instruction of the Commission Araqishvili organized

four (1901, 1902, 1904, 1908) field expeditions in

different provinces of Georgia and collected huge

http://www.folk.ge/

4

musical material (over 500 folk examples), which he

subsequently published in three thick volumes supplied

with vast research and comments. Here is the short list

of Araqishvilis folkloristic works: Georgian Single-

Part Folk Songs, Georgian Music, Description and

Measurement of Georgian Musical Instruments,

Rachan Folk Songs, Svan Folk songs, Modal

Structure of West Georgian Folk Songs, essays on

Kartli-Kakhetian, Imeretian, North-Caucasian music,

etc. These works showed the diversity and originality of

Georgian folk music, and laid foundation to its scholarly

study.

In 1906 together with prominent Russian

musicians Araqishvili laid foundation to Peoples

Conservatoire, where he himself was a teacher. Two

years later he started free courses in music for the

poorest students of Arbat. In 1908 on his initiative and

as a result of his efforts first journal Muzika i Zhizn

was published in Moscow; to which he was the editor

during several years. At the same time Araqishvili was

an active member of the Moscow based Georgian

Society of Science, Art and Literature headed by A.

Sumbatashvili-Yuzhin.

Araqishvili combined his pedagogical and

scholarly activities with intensive creative work. To this

period belong more than 20 of his best romances, the

opera Tkmuleba Shota Rustavelze (The Story on

Shota Rustaveli, 1904), performed at Tbilisi Opera

House in 1919 (this work initiates the history of

Georgian opera), symphonic picture Himni Ormuzds

Hymn to Ormuzd (Sazandrebs Shoris Among the

Sazandaris, 1911) and many choral pieces.

In 1918 Araqishvili moved to Georgia aiming to

train young specialists. On his initiative second

Conservatoire was founded in 1921. In 1923 both

Conservatoires united as Tbilisi Conservatoire and in

1926-1930 Araqishvili was Rector, Head of Depart-

ment, Dean of Composition Department. In 1932 he

headed Georgian Composers Union, in Soviet Epoch

Araqishvilis creative work was enriched with pieces of

various genres (comic opera Dinara, symphonies, a

cantata). The most extensive field of Araqishvilis legacy is chamber-vocal lyrics. The composer created truly

classical examples.

Together with the composers of other gene-

rations (M. Balanchivadze, Z. Paliashvili, N. Sulkhani-

shvili and V. Dolidze) Araqishvili is recognized as the

founder of national school of composition.

D. Araqishvilis basic works:

Kartuli Erovnuli Ertkhmovani Simgherebi/Georgian

Single-Part Folk Songs. For the schools of Tbilisi and

Kutaisi Provinces (1905). Publication #73 of the Society

for Dissemination of Literacy Tpilisi: Kutateladzes

Publishing (in Georgian).

Kartuli Musika/Georgian Music (1925). Tbilisi: Mets-

niereba sakartveloshi. Kutaisi: local typography (in

Georgian).

Khalkhuri Samusiko sakravebis Aghtsera da Gazom-

va/Description and Measurement of Folk Musical

Instruments (1940). Tbilisi: Teknika da Shroma (in

Georgian).

Rachuli Khalkhuri Simgherebi/Rachan Folk Songs

(1950). Tbilisi: Khelovneba (in Georgian).

Svanuri Khalkhuri Simgherebi/Svan Folk Songs

(1950). Tbilisi: Khelovneba (in Georgian).

Dasavlet sakartvelos Khalkhur Simgherata Kilos

Tsqoba/ Modal structure of west Georgian Folk Songs

(1954). Tbilisi: Khelovenba (in Georgian).

Kratkii Ocherk razvitia Gruzinskoi Kartalino-Kakhe-

tinskoi Narodnoi Pesni s Prilozheniem Kratkii Ocherk

Razvitia Gruzinskoi Kartalino-Kakhetinskoi Narodnoi

Pesni, s Prilozheniem Notnikh Primerov i 27 Pesen v

Narodnoi Garmonizacii; O Gruzinskoi Dukhovnoi

narodnoi Muzike, s Prilozheniem Napevov na Liturgii

Sv. Ioanna Zlatoustogo/Short Essays on Georgian

Kartli-Kakhetian Folk Song with transcriptions and 27

folk examples. On Georgian Sacred Music, with the

chants of St. John the Chrysosdom (1905). Moscow:

Menshov Typogarphy (in Russian)

Narodnaya Pesnya zapadnoi Gruzii (Imeretii). S

Prilozheniem 83 Pesen v Narodnoy Garmonizatsii

/Folk Songs of Western Georgia (Imereti), with 83

examples with folk harmony (1908). Excerpts from the

Works of Musical-Ethnographic Society vol.II.

I.O.L.E.A. i E. Moscow (in Russian).

Gruzinskoe Narodnoe Muzikalnoe Tvorchestvo (Naro-

dnaya Pesnya Vostochnoy Gruzii i Severnogo Kav-

kaza) s Prilozheniem 225 Pesen v Narodnoy Garmonii

I 39 Instruemntalnikh melodii/Georgisn Folk Musical

Art (Folk Song of West Georgia and North Caucasus)

with 225 songs with folk harmony and 39 instrumental

pieces (1916). Excerpts from the Works of Musical-

Ethnographic Society vol.V. Moscow (in Russian).

Moscow: G. Lisener i D. Sobko Typography (in

Russian).

Gruzinskaya Muzika/ Georgian Music (1925). Kutaisi:

local Typography (in Russian).

Pesni Gortsev Vostochnoy Gruzii. zhurn. Sovetskaya

Muzika, 1939, #4//Songs of East Georgian Mountain

Dwellers; journ.Sovetskaya Muzika1939, #4 (in

Russian).

Kratkii Istoricheskii Obzor Gruzinskoy Muziki /Short

Historical Revew of Georgian Music (1940). Tbilisi:

Georgian State Publishing. Musical- Literary Section

(in Russian).

Obzor Narodnoy Pesni Vostochnoy Gruzii/Review of

East Georgian Folk Music. 1948 (in Russian).

Three operas, 2 symphonic pictures, 2 symphonies, a

symphonic suite, chamber-instrumental pieces for

5

string quartet, violoncello, piano; choral pieces; about

80 romances and songs.

Renowned Foreign Ethnomusicologists

Izaly Zemtsovsky (1936)

Izaly Zemtsovsky

It is not accidental that we are beginning the

headline with the world renowned scholar Izaly

Zemtsovsky. We are proud that he is a friend of Ge-

orgian culture. He is a good connoisseur and beneficent

not only of our folk music but of Georgian Culture as a

whole. His close relation with everything Georgian

originated in the 1980s, when with his recommendations

he helped Georgian folklorists organize international

conferences on polyphony at Tbilisi State Conser-

vatoire.

All the more his paper The Problem of Musical

Dialogue: Antiphony and diaphony delivered at the

International Conference in Borjomi (1986), his well-

established theory of musical dialogue made significant

impact on Georgian ethnomusicology of the 1980s,

determined the directions of Edisher Garqanidzes and

Joseph Jordanias further researches.

It should also be noted that a great admirer of

the Georgian philosopher Merab Mamardashvili and

perfect connoisseur of his heritage, Zemtsovsky often

refers to the philosophers considerations to substantiate

his own opinions. This, in our opinion, testifies to the

spiritual and mental affinity of the two great scholars.

Izaly Zemtsovsky is a foreign scholar who in

the 1980s foresaw that Georgia would become one of

the most important centers of polyphony. In 2002 he

actively supported the creation of the International

Research Center for Traditional Polyphony at Tbilisi

State Conservatoire and greatly assisted us in the

organization of the 1st International Symposium on

Traditional Polyphony. With his participation in

Tbilisi symposia he, together with other world

renowned scholars, considerably determined the sci-

entific level of the forums.

Dr. Izaly Zemtsovsky, a folklorist and eth-

nomusicologist, born in St. Petersburg, a pupil of

Vladimir Propp. Doctor of Arts, Professor, Honored

Art Worker of Russia. From 1960 worked at the

Russian Institute for the History of the Arts (St.

Petersburg), from 1994 taught various courses in the

United States universities (UCLA, UC Berkeley, UW

Madison and Stanford). Since 2006, he is a founding

Board Director of the Silk Road House _ a pioneering non-profit organization in Bay Area, a New Cultural

and Educational Centre in Berkeley, California. Ser-

ved as an Executive Board Member at the Intern-

ational Council for Traditional Music (UNESCO,

1989-93); The American Jaap Kunst Prize winner

(1997); Honorary Professor of V.Sarajishvili Tbilisi

State Conservatoire (2006); The American Biogra-

phical Institute named him a Great Mind of the 21st

Century (2006); Laureate of the Fumio Koizumi Prize

in Ethnomusicology (2011); Listed in The New Grove

Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2nd

Edition (Vol.

27, 2001);

Dr. Zemtsovsky is the author of a score of

books and more than 550 articles published in

different languages. The list of books includes, among

others, The Russian Drawn-Out Song: A Study (Le-

ningrad, 1967); Songs of Toropets: Songs from the

Homeland of Mussorgsky (Leningrad, 1967); The

Poetry of Peasant Holidays (1970), The Melodics of

Calendar Songs (Leningrad, 1975); Folklore and the

Composer (Leningrad, 1978), On the Trail of the

Vesnianka Melody in Tchaikovsky's Piano Con-

certo: The Historical Morphology of the Folk Song

(Leningrad, 1987); Boris Asaf'yev on Folk Music

(with Alma Kunanbaeva. Leningrad, 1987); Jewish

Folk Songs: An Anthology (St. Petersburg, 1994); The

Heroic Epos of the Life and Works of Boris N. Putilov

(St. Petersburg: European House, 2005); From the

World of Oral Traditions: Collected Reflections (St.

Petersburg, 2006).

Education:

1955 _ B.A. College Diploma, composer and pianist / College of Music, St. Petersburg, Russia, Professor

Galina Ustvolskayas class;

1958 _ M.A., Russian Philology / St. Petersburg Uni-versity, Professor Vladimir Propps class;

1960 _ M.A., Russian Ethnomusicology / St. Peters-burg Conservatory, Prof. Feodosiy Rubtsovs class;

1961 _ M.A., Composition / St. Petersburg Conser-vatory, Professor Vadim Salmanovs class;

1964 _ Ph.D., Ethnomusicology (Dissertation: The Russian Drawn-Out Song) Institute of Theatre,

Music, and Cinematography (ITMK), St. Petersburg,

6

Russia;

1981 _ Doctorate in Ethnography and Folklore (Disser-tation: The Melodics of Calendar Songs) / Kiev

Institute of Arts, Ethnography, and Folklore, Academy

of Sciences, Ukraine;

1992 _ Full Professor Diploma / Russian Institute for the History of the Arts, St. Petersburg.

Zemtsovskys entire research activity, which

already extends over 56 years (if his first folklore

expedition in 1956 is considered as a beginning), can be

combined into three broad areas:

Folklore and the composer: not only in the

traditional aspect of the musicological study of folklore

origins and sources in the art of composition, but also by

taking a more innovative approach _ the study of how, in their works _ in the very music, not in theory _ com-posers open folklore and its laws, to hitherto unknown

knowledge;

Russian folklore: (ritual, lyric and epic) (a) in

its unique system of genres and (b) in its various

Eurasian connections and relations. The scholar have

proposed a new scholarly discipline, which he called

ethnogeomusicology, as well as new research appro-

aches, in particular the historical morphology of the folk

song. This is the title of a series begun in 1987 with a

volume called Following the Spring Song from

Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto, and before that with a

monograph on the Russian prolonged song in 1967);

and finally:

The History, Theory and Methodology of

Ethnomusicology: In this regard he not only

endeavours to offer something of his own, but also to

bring back into the academic community something

which has been unjustly forgotten from the legacy of

Russian thought about the music of the oral tradition.

Since the 1960s he has been concerned with fun-

damental questions of scholarly research, which are

designed to lead to the discovery of nature, that is, the

core, or the very essence of the music of the oral

tradition. This interest intensified when he started

investigating the question of music and ethno genesis,

that is, the role and place of the music of the oral

tradition in the study of the ethnic history of different

peoples _ right up to the musical basis of the modern ethnic map of Eurasia. In regard to the role of the music

of the oral tradition in the history of music, he

transferred traditional analytical focus from the usual

history of music to music as history _ music as an historical document.

These three major research areas involve three basic theses, three creeds _ the three fundamental maxims of Russian scholarship _ as he understands them.

The first belongs to Vladimir Odoyevsky:

Translate the Feeling of an Ethnicity into Technical

Language _ that is, base your rationale for musico-

logical analysis on what forms our ethnic sense and is

recognizable by ear instantly, like mothers voice.

The second is based on Goethes paraphrase,

formulated by the ethnographer Lev Sternberg, Who

knows one people knows none. Hence the urgent

need for comparative (and especially comparative

typological) research.

The third was also taken from the covenants of

Sternberg: All humanity is one. That implies that we

are justified in discerning global features that are

common to all humanity.

Zemtsovsky is the author of some neologisms

such as intonational thesis, intonational field, per-

formance interaction, ethno-hearing, melosphere,

musical substance, genre generative model, cantilena-

narration, musical dialogism (musical dialogics),

ethnogeomusicology, musical existence, musical

Yiddishism, Homo Musicus, Homo Polyphonicus,

Homo Musicans Polyethnoaudience, Homo Lyricus,

Historism-at-any-price.

We wish Prof. Zemtsovsky health, prospe-

rity, and have hope for future cooperation with

him.

7

Foreign musical folklore

Propane lamps, Car-battery Amps, and

the Occasional Cobra: The Chaotic

Culture of Marrakech's Djemaa el Fna

Ben Wheeler

The sights, smells, and sounds of Djemaa el Fna

(a large central square in the center of Marrakech,

Morocco) spike the senses of the uninitiated with

unforgiving force. This sensory overload can make it

difficult to fully grasp the social, culinary, and musical

phenomena flourishing all around you. So let's focus on

one sense at a time. Smells: Ginseng tea with cinnamon and ginger

wafting out of a line of little stalls. Pungent smoke from

the dozens of make-shift kitchens grilling kebabs of

lamb and fat soaked with saffron, steaming goat heads,

boiling enormous pots of chickpea and tomato soup.

Towers of snails cooked with anise and hot peppers that

are sold by the bowl-full from wooden carts. Gasoline

from the lines of motorized scooters charging through

the crowds, dust and dirt flung up by the foot traffic, and

little clouds of cigarette smoke drifting over the groups

of spectators. Sights: Snake charmers crouching on carpets,

covering their cobra's with small drums during inter-

missions. Monkeys of all sizes being led around on a

chain posing for pictures or being encouraged by their

owners to jump on the shoulders of unsuspecting

tourists. Old men in djellabas (a thick, hooded, long-

sleeved robe worn throughout most of North Africa)

strolling with their hands held behind their backs.

Tourists of all types wandering wide-eyed, most

carrying an expression of both the excited and the shell-

shocked. Stalls stacked full of dried fruit and nuts,

medicine men from the Sahara sitting cross-legged on

faded carpets, hawking potions, incense, and dried

lizards, dentists selling dentures and trays full of loose

teeth. And of course, the musicians. Sounds: the music of Djemaa el Fna flares up

suddenly and dies out in an equally abrupt fashion. But

this is happening all around you, each ensemble or

solo musician's tunes bleeding into one another, each

tune surface and resurfacing in a 360 degree radius. To

find some kind of order in this musical chaos, one

must determine the instruments being used and the

genre that is played. In the afternoon, you'll most

likely hear zurna, a powerful double-reeded wood

wind instrument whose thin piercing tone cuts through

the clamor of the crowds. Zurna, along with a frame

drum called the Bendir, are the instruments of the

snake charmers.

Central square in the center of Marrakech Djemaa el Fna

These performances are most common during

the daylight hours for what seems to be a fairly

practical reason: its hard to keep track of a dark

skinned cobra at night. Many of these men are

associated with the Esawa cult, founded by Sidi

Muhammad Ibn 'Aisa. Certain members of this

religious cult are expected to bite off the heads of

snakes or fill their mouths with scorpions but milder

practices usually involve only the protection and

possession of these creatures.

The snake charmers who perform in modern

Djemaa el Fna will usually stand or sit in groups of 4

or 5, with one man playing the zurna and charming the

snake, while the others accompany him on drums or

walk up to tourists with smaller snakes in their hands,

asking for money and posing for photos. The music of

the snake charmer's zurna is restless and frenetic,

usually beginning with a low tonic note followed by

an abrupt skip to the 5th

and a ornamented descent back

down to the tonic where this melodic cycle will start

again until the performer has finished. The range and

scale most often heard by this author was something

resembling a phyrigian mode that went as follows [m-

minor, M - major, P- perfect] : m7 - tonic m2 m3

P4 P5. But there are also songs featuring an

8

augmented 2nd

between the 2nd

and 3rd

scale degrees.

Less common to my experience was the phenomena of

multiple zurna players performing together but the few

times I did witness it, the nature of the music was

heterophonic: both men played essentially the same melody within the same range using different or-

namentations. Later in the afternoon, an auditory competition

begins: the squealing zurnas are contested by a ca-

cophonous metallic clacking. These are the shaqshaqa

or qarqabat, large metal castanets that constitute an

essential element in the performance of Gnawa music.

This tradition is said to have originated with the slaves

brought from Senegal to Morocco who subsequently

became blacksmiths. Thus, the importance of metal

castanets in their music. But this percussion instrument

is not the only essential element to the Gnawa tradition.

Drums are often played, usually slung over the per-

formers side with a strap and hit with two different

mallets. One is a thick, curved stick and the other a thin

straight one. These drums are called ganga. The other

important instrumental element of this tradition is the

hajhuj or gumbri. This is a large bass instrument with a

body made from wood and hide and a round fretless

neck made from what looks like a broom stick. The

hajhuj has two long strings and one short drone string.

The technique utilized by hajhuj performers is very

similar to claw hammer or frailing, terms used for

banjo. The fingers of the right hand are curled like a

claw and the hand is brought down into the strings, with

the thumb plucking only the lowest string. The shorter

string is plucked by the first or second fingers. This

technique also creates a percussive element, with the

right hand hitting the hide during this process. Typically, a Gnawa performance goes as

follows: the shaqshaqa, using string to keep them in the

performers grasp, are placed in the hands of multiple

musicians who will repeat this pattern ad nauseam

(Gnawa music is traditionally used for healing practices

and to cause the listener to fall into a trance, thus the

repetitive nature of the castanets):clack, clack, click,

clack clack click, (or right hand right hand left hand). In

some circumstances these instruments are doubled by

hand claps from Moroccan spectators or the group's

singers. These are polyrythmic patterns, usually one

clapper with take the offbeats (or a pattern that

emphasizes those beats) and the other clappers the down

beats, creating a rich and complex rhythmic texture

which is especially interesting due to the fact that any

Moroccan, be it musician or spectator, seems capable of

instantaneously partaking in this polyrhythmic practice.

This texture, combined with the hajhuj (and the drums

on some occasions) will accompany the groups singing.

Typically the hajhuj players sing a solo line and then

there is a response from the rest of the performers. Meanwhile, the propane lamps and amplifiers

attached to car batteries are being carted out into the

square and set up in small circles, complete with

benches, chairs, and a small collection of different

drums. One member of this new group will start

gathering spectators, asking them for money to fund

the upcoming performance. This is often done in a

good natured and comical fashion, through the use of

stories or anecdotes. Once a crowd has gathered and

sufficient funds have been collected, the music can

begin. The instruments played by these different

groups vary: most often there is an assortment of

percussion, frame drums, different Arab drums, and in

one case, part of a steel barrel on top of which one

performer, with great enthusiasm and finesse, will

dance different rhythms along with the music. You

may also find ouds in various states of disrepair:

missing strings or with holes in the body, that are

plugged into small amplifiers. Violin is common,

placed vertically with the bridge-end placed in the lap

and the bow running left to right. Different traditional

lutes are also played, the loutar or the gunbri. These

are Berber instruments made using goat skin for the

body and a round stick for the neck. These different

groups perform more modern songs, from Moroccan

bands like Nass el Ghiwane, and other popular

tunes. Spectators who are willing to chip in a few extra

dirham can also make requests. Whatever the

combination of instruments or the songs that are

performed, the moment the music begins, so will the

spectators clapping and singing. This polyrhythmic

audience participation is an essential part of the music

in Djemaa el Fna. One has to experience all of these phenomena

simultaneously to fully appreciate the chaotic culture

of Djemaa el Fna. This isn't difficult because you

have no choice. While the square is large, the music is

too loud, the food is too fragrant, and the crowds of

roving performers and spectators make any kind of

isolation impossible. This blend of musical, culinary,

and cultural phenomena is what truly makes Djemaa el

Fna.

Ben Wheeler

Student of the short course in Georgian

Folk Music of the International Research

Centre for Traditional Polyphony

9

Georgian Childrens Folk Ensembles

Martve

In 1976 Anzor Erkomaishvili founded boys

ensemble Martve. It is one of the most popular

merited boys ensembles; it is already 37 years old. The

membership of the ensemble and its prep studio counts

5 generations- over 1000 children have studied folk

songs.

With its concert life, television presentations,

radio recordings and other forms of activity Martve

promoted Georgian folk song during years, arousing big

interest among young generation. The ensemble greatly

contributed to the appearance of a large number of

childrens ensembles in Georgia. Former members of

the ensemble now teach folk songs to their children;

they have revived the centuries-old tradition of music

playing in families.

Many former members of Martve graduated

from the Conservatoire, Institute of Culture and Music

Schools. Today they direct their own ensembles and

teach folk songs to children. Since 1995 Martve has

been directed by Varlam Kutidze himself an alumni of

the ensemble.

The first generation of Martve

Martve performed concerts in many countries

of the world, thus rendering a service to Georgia and its

culture. But the greatest merit is probably that in the last

quarter of the 20th century, when almost entire world

was carried away with low quality music and aesthetic

upbringing of adolescents was threatened, Martve

aroused national aspiration among the young and turned

them toward folk singing. Today the youth holds the

reins of folk singing; which indicates to its immortality!

At the concert dedicated to the ensembles 20th

anniversary over 1000 young men representing all

generations of Martve stood on the stage and sang

Chakrulo. This was a true festival of song and love,

showing that the fate of Georgian song is in reliable

hands. First generation of Martve declared this date as

the ensembles day; from then on Martve celebrates

every 31 May.

New generation of Martve

During its existence the ensemble held over

1500 concerts, participated in a number of television

and radio programs. Zaal Kakabadze made the film

Mgheris Martve (Martve is singing). Film maker

Gia Mataradze shot the film Shvidi Novela

Siqvarulze (Seven Short Stories on Love) with the

participation of Martve boys as actors and singers.

Soviet sound recording studio Melodiya released

several LPs of Martve, the book Martve 20

Tslisaa (Martve is 20) was dedicated to the date,

Japanese sound label Victor released the ensembles

songs on CDs.

On 8 April, 2011 the star of Martve was

opened at Tbilisi Concert Hall (the ensembles Web

Site is www.martve.ge)

Mdzlevari

After Alan Lomax called Georgia the Capital

of the Worlds Folk Music and UNESCOs

proclamation of Georgian traditional polyphonic

singing as a Masterpiece of the Intangible Cultural

Heritage of Humanity the upbringing of young

generation on national musical basis became

especially actual and necessary, as the formation of

aesthetic-artistic thinking of young generation is starts

at early age.

Boys folk ensemble Mdzlevari has been in

this truly patriotic activity since 1994. Scholars are of

the opinion that the word mdzlevari could be related

to old Georgian term dznoba meaning chant.

According to I. Javakhishvili dznoba and mdznobari

could relate to choir practice in ancient times; the

explanation dictionary explains the word mdzlevari as

the one who surmounts, surpasses, in another

dictionary of Georgian sub-dialects it is explained as a

migratory singing bird.

Mdzlevari is directed by, the soloist of the

State Ensemble of Georgian Folk Song and Dance

Rustavi the father and son Tariel and Kakhaber

http://www.martve.ge/

10

Onashvili, worthy representatives of the traditional

Onashvili family.

Involved in the teaching process are other rep-

resentatives of the ensembles older generation: Giorgi

Bajelidze, Archil Roinishvili, Shota Migriauli and

others. They aim to develop the interest to folklore into

serious relation, and make folk songs an inseparable

companion of the Georgian youths life.

The ensembles membership counts over 50

young men; they often perform in concerts, participate

in television and radio programs, promote folk music.

Mdzlevari has had a number of victories and is one of

the best childrens collectives today. Among its merits is

first degree diploma at Okros Martve Festival and

participation in the World First Delphiade, in Tbilisi

Folk Festival, first place at the Festival Momavlis

Khmebi, Prize for best performance at the Festival of

Orthodox Voices in Pomorje (Bulgaria), successful

performance in Macedonia, Bulgaria, Egypt, Swit-

zerland, Sankt Petersburg and Moscow together with

Ensemble Rustavi and Tbilisi Symphony Orchestra

(under Vakhtang Kakhidzes baton).

The repertoire of Mdzlevari includes over 80

examples of different genres from various parts of

Georgia. The ensemble has released two CDs; its Web

Site is www.mdzlevari.ge

Erkvani

Male Folk choir Erkvani was created in

2001 on the basis of Music School of Georgian Pupils

Palace of Folklore. The choir is directed by a singer

and song- master Kakhaber Shakishvili, who has

worked as a song master at the Palace for over two

decades and greatly contributes to the upbringing of

young generation. The age of the choir members is 8-

18 years; todays membership of the choir is the fourth

generation; however among them also are several

representatives of the 2nd

and 3rd

generations.

During the 10 years of its biography Erk-

vani has been success at a number of international

and national folk festivals; is the three-fold Grand Prix

holder.

Erkvani has successfully performed at the

World Folklore Festivals in Ukraine and Lithuania.

The choir co-operates with Georgian Patriar-

chy and chants at the Holy Trinity Cathedral Church at

Easter and Christmas; has released two CDs of the

songs of various genres

.

In 2008 Erkvani was conferred the title of

The Young Envoy of Georgian Culture, was the

winner of the State Diploma of V-Vega.

In 2011 Erkvani celebrated its 10th anniver-

sary with the jubilee concert at the Grand Hall of

Tbilisi State Conservatoire. On 17 April, 2013 Erk-

vani was awarded Georgian Trade Unions Prize, was

conferred the title of the best ensemble of the year. In

near future the ensemble plans to release the third CD

and participation in a Choir Festival in Paris. The

ensembles Web Site is www.erqvani.ge

http://www.mdzlevari.ge/http://www.erqvani.ge/

11

Lasharela Childrens folk ensemble Lasharela was created in 1998 by Giorgi Ushikishvili a song master and

Director of the State Folk Centre of Georgia.

The ensembles members are school children

and so the alternation of generations is a frequent

occurrence; in the collectives repertoire are folk

examples from almost all parts of Georgia, including

those revived by the members of ensemble Lashari.

Lasharela successfully holds concerts in various regions of Georgia, participates in television and

radio programs, charity concerts; has recorded a CD

abroad.

In 2009 the ensemble participated in the

International Folk Festival in Austria and was awarded a

special diploma.

In 2010 at The Days of Georgian Culture in

Turkey the Ensemble was awarded the diploma For the

Presentation of Best Folk Examples.

In August, 2013 Lasharela will take part in

the International Folk Festival in Nerebar (Bulgaria).

Lasharela frequently participates in the festivals in

Georgia such as Momavlis Khma, Mtatsmindis

Hangebi, Tbilisoba where it is awarded diplomas

and deeds.

The ensembles success is greatly determined by the

experienced teachers and song masters: Ucha Pataridze

and Tornike Skhiereli members of ensemble Lash-

ari; These are professionals, who thoroughly follow

the principle of authentic performance of folk songs

inculcated in the ensemble by Giorgi Ushikishvili.

Prepared by Maka Khardziani

Expedition Diary

Expedition in Zemo Achara

(Keda District)

In Achara and Svaneti, like other regions of Georgia, traditional folk song can still be heard, where

there are traditional musical instrument masters and

rich ethnographic-folk material can be collected.

Renowned scholars, such as Shalva Mshvelidze,

Dimitri Araqishvili, Tamar Mamaladze, Vladimer

Akhobadze, Kakhi Rosebashvili, Mindia Zhordania,

Evsevi Chokhonelidze, Edisher Garaqanidze, Nato

Zumbadze, Yvette Grimaud visited the region with

field expeditions.

In April, 2013 Georgian Folk Music Depar-

tment of Tbilisi State Conservatoire organized folk-

music expedition in the region. The members of the

expedition led by Teona Rukhadze-a Doctoral student

of the Department were Teona Lomsadze and me -

Sopiko Kotrikadze. We performed our activities in

several villages of various communities in Keda

district, such as Makhuntseti Community- villages

Kveda Makhuntseti and Kveda Bzubzu, Zvare Village

Council villages Vaio and Kvashta, Dolingo Com-

munity villages Dologani and Zemo Agara, Tskh-

morisi Community villages Tskhmorisi and Koko-

tauri, Dandalo Community villages Dandalo and

Kharaula, Octomberi Community village Medzibna,

Merisi Community villages Didi Merisi and Gun-

dauri.

The expedition documented several individual

performers of various ages and a group of singers,

instrumentalists playing the panduri, chonguri, chi-

boni and garmoni; we also recorded examples of oral

folklore and videotaped folk games, collected interes-

ting ethnographic material on Lazaroba and wedding

rituals, also recorded folk ensembles Elesa and

Iagundi in Keda District.

12

Fadime Lortkipanidze

singer and panduri player

The expedition material contains rich song

repertoire, alongside local Acharan songs (Khintskala,

Maqruli, Vosa, etc) we encountered song examples

of other regions. It is noteworthy that the songs of the

so-called new formation, such as Stalin, Stalin,

Saqvarelo, Simghera Acharaze, Ganakhlebuli Acha-

ra and others have survived to this day.

Most songs are three-part, single-part songs are

basically solo repertoire for panduri or Nanebi. We have

not encountered two-part songs; apparently they are

gradually being buried in oblivion.

Most common instrument in Keda District is

panduri, we encountered panduri players in almost all

villages there. Alongside Acharan instrumental pieces

(Khorumi, Gadakhveuli Khorumi, Gandagana)

we also documented single-part pieces and comic

verses. Here Chonguri common West-Georgian

instrument is darkened by panduri.

Special mention should be made of chiboni and

its tradition in Achara. Unlike Rachan gudastviri the

tradition of chiboni is still alive in Achara. All three

chibobi players that we recorded make the instrument

themselves and have students. Renowned chiboni player

Vasil Iremadze added third pipe to the instrument and

turned two-part chiboni into three-part one. His students

still follow this tradition and make both two-pipe and

three-pipe chiboni.

Bichiko Diasamidze

chibobi player

Noteworthy is the fact that alongside Acharan

instrumental pieces (Gandagana,

Qolsama, Shalakho, Khorumi) a new tendency

has been mentioned to perform the songs such as

Kekela da Maro, Mtashi Salamurs Vakvneseb

with chiboni accompaniment.

Separate mention should be made of village

Merisi rich in musical traditions, here various types of

songs are sung in almost all families, including local

Merisi variants of Acharan songs. There is a youth

ensemble in the village; together with the ensemble we

also recorded a group of elderly singers and the

Turmanidze family. The Merisi repertoire is truly

distinguished from that of other villages.

Ensemble Merisi

It should be noted, that young ethno-

musicologist Nino Razmadze cooperated with

Merisi dwellers in 2006-2007; she prepared and

presented the evening The Folklore of One Vil-

lage at the Grand Hall of Tbilisi State Conser-

vatoire in 2010. The example of this village gives hope that song will never be forgotten in Achara.

Sopiko Kotrikadze Magistracy student of V. Sarajishvili Tbilisi State Conservatoire

13

One foreign folk ensemble

The Traditional Singing Group

Saucjas from Latvia

The traditional singing group of the Latvian

Academy of Culture, Saucjas was founded in 2003 in

Rga and currently has nine singers: Iveta Tle

(director), Marianna Auliciema, Kristne Jansone, Indra

Mtra, Janta Mea, Signe Pujte, Vineta Romne, Ieva

Tihovska and Vija Veinberga. The singers are united

with a common goal to learn and promote Latvian

traditional singing styles and techniques, paying special

attention to local traditions that feature multipart

singing. The repertoire of Saucjas includes various

types of Latvian traditional polyphony, mostly

documented in Latvias three regions Kurzeme

(West), Selonia (South East) and Latgale (East).

Group Saucjas

These samples provide an insight into different

types of archaic drone singing, and various forms of

recent-origin polyphony. Another priority in the choice

of repertoire is related to the availability of archival

sound recordings or direct contact with singers the

carriers of tradition during field work. In order to gain a

more comprehensive impression of the available

musical material, the members of the group are also

interested in the functional contexts of songs, termi-

nology used in singing, the individual experience of

particular singers, language dialects, etc.

Thematically the repertoire of Saucjas is

associated with seasonal celebrations (midsummers

eve, Christmas), family traditions (weddings, funerals)

and work life (herding, collective work in the field), as

well as the traditional practice of singing outdoors

during spring and summer (rotanas, gavilanas),

when singing was used as a tool for communication, and

expressing joy about singing and the beauty of sur-

rounding nature.

The manuscript for a rotana springtime song (Archive of

Latvian Folklore) and the published version (Andrejs Jur-

jans Larvju tautas muzicas materiali II, 1903, p.46)

Saucjas has prepared a number of concert

programmes dedicated to different Latvian vocal

traditions. The group has released two albums (2007,

2012). The last of these, Dziediet meitas, vokor, is

the winner of the Latvian annual music award for the

best folk album in 2012. This album is dedicated to the

traditional music of two Latvian parishes, Slpils and

Vrnava, unique with their vibrant multipart harmony

with tense second intervals. The most impressive

songs in this collection are three and four-part spring

rotaana songs.

As the only remaining evidence of this singing

style comprises transcriptions made by Andrejs Jurjns

in 1891 and sparse ethnographic notes, Saucjas

undertook reconstruction of the songs in collaboration

ethnomusicologists, specialists in traditional vocal

technique and dialectology, and also experimented

with singing in authentic acoustic environment.

Saucjas has performed abroad: in Lithu-

ania, Estonia, Georgia, Poland, Belarus, Russia, Bul-

garia, Austria and France.

14

Saucjas with Ucha Pataridze of Lashari and Tea

Kasaburi of Nanina at the International Simpozium of

Tradition Polyphony in Tbilisi

In 2008 the group performed at the International

Symposium on Traditional Polyphony at Tbilisi State

Conservatory. The most recent creative achievement of

the group on international level is the solo concert in

Theatre de la Ville in Paris in April, 2013.

Iveta Tle Head of Saucjas

Beneficents of Georgian Song

The Erkomaishvilis

Singing is the spiritual mirror of a nation, a sound chronicle, which reflects the centuries-old

historical process of nations development; this is why

the Georgian spirit and ancestors traditions are best

preserved in song. Song is eternal as long as it follows

generations, but will die out, if it is forgotten by the

young. If you want to preserve folk song, you should

teach them to children; if a child studies folk song at

an early age and falls in love with it, the song will be

with him all his life and so ancient traditions will be

preserved (A. Erkomaishvili).

The result of such attitude is that not one

person, but a whole family with 300 years of musical

tradition has been beneficent of Georgian folk song.

Proceeding from this the family name Erkomaishvili is

associated with folk song in Guria and not only there.

From this family of singer-chanters (Toma, Ivane,

Giorgi, Gigo, Gigos 10 children and grandchildren)

most distinguished is Gigo, his three sons Artem,

Anania and Vladimer and Artems grandson Anzor

Erkomaishvili.

Gigo Erkomaishvili (1840-1947) was born in

the village of Aketi Lanchkhuti District in 1840. His

first teacher was his father Ivane renowned for

peculiar voice gamqivani. Later Gigo mastered his

skills with the singers from Aketi. In the 1870s he

became good friends with Nestor Kontridze a

renowned chanter-singer and public figure and

clergyman, from whom he studied many chants. At the

age of 20 Gigo created a trio together with Giorgi

Babilodze (gamqivani) and Giorgi Iobishvili. The trio

became famous all over Guria; later Ivliane Ke-

chaqmadze, Naniko Burdzgla and Ermile Molarishvili

joined the group. They created their own variants of

the songs they had heard in different villages.

In 1907 British Gramophone Company

released the records of 49 songs performed by Gigos

ensemble. In 1918 Gigo, Anania, Artem and Ladiko

Erkomaishvilis, Giorgi Babilodze and Nestor

Kontridze were invited to Tbilis; where renowned

Georgian composers Meliton Balanchivadze, Dimitri

Araqishvili, Ia Kargareteli, Kote Meghvinetukhutsesi,

Kote Potskhverashvili recorded the songs as

performed by them.

Gigo was a brilliant performer of naduri songs

many people wished to study Naduri songs from

him. Many people also studied song chants from

Gigo.

Gigo Erkomaishvili served folk song until his

last day, at very old age he still supported his children

who suitably continued musical traditions of the

family.

15

Gigo and Artem Erkomaishvilis

Artem Erkomaishvili (1887-1967) a self-taught

composer, song master, singer, Merited Art Worker of

Georgia; studied Gurian songs at an early age and

started his teaching activity as a young man. He directed

folk choirs in Makvaneti, Batumi, Ozurgeti and held

concerts in the cities of Georgia and neighbouring

countries. At the phonogram archive of the Russian

Academy of Sciences preserved are unique examples

performed by Artems Choir.

Artem was also a talented chanter; he studied

all three voice parts of about 2000 chants and thus

became an accomplished chanter. Fortunately the

archive of the laboratory of Georgian Folk Music

Department of Tbilisi State Conservatoire holds

Artems recordings of about 200 chants.

It was thanks to his father Gigo and brother

Artem, that Anania Erkomaishvili (1891-1977)

mastered the fundamentals of singing-chanting. In

1918 Anania together with Artem, Vladimer and Gigo

Erkomaishvili and Giorgi Babilodze participated in the

transcribing sessions of Gurian songs in Tbilisi,

Anania was a member of Artems choir until 1936 and

from then on he was a soloist of West Georgian

Ethnographic Choir. In 1977 he recorded three voice-

parts at Georgian State Radio. Anani had the voice of

flexible range; he equally masterly sang bass, tsvrili

and krimanchuli. For his contribution to Georgian

Folkloristics Anania Erkomaishvili was conferred the

title of the Merited Artist of Georgia.

Vladimer (Ladime) Erkomaishvili (1897-

1982) studied Gurian songs from his elder sisters and

brothers and chonguri playing from his mother. Like

Anania he wonderfully sang all voice-parts: damts-

qebi, modzakhili, gamqivani, krimanchuli and bass; he

wonderfully played the chonguri, panduri, salamuri,

doli, garmoni and was also a good dancer.

At the age of 17 he was enlisted in his

fathers Gigo Erkomaishvilis ensemble. When he

was 20 Vladimer started his pedagogical activity; at

various times he was a singer and folk music teacher

in the State Choir of Achara, artistic director of

Gurian-Acharan choir of Batumi sea-port workers,

song master of the Song and dance Ensemble of

Makharadze (modern day Ozurgeti) Regional house

of culture. Under Vladimers direction the ensemble

was awarded a number of prizes.

Erkomaishvili Brothers (From left to right:

Anania, Artem and Vladimer)

In 1968 on Vladimers initiative a school

for the revival and study of Gurian folk song was

founded in Ozurgeti; here he himself worked as a

teacher. In 1979-1981 he was a consultant to child-

rens studios for studying Gurian songs. From 1979

until death he directed Ensemble Elesa.

The Erkomaishvilis worthly preserve and

continue family traditions. Anzor Erkomaishvili

Artems grandson the son of Davit (Datiko)

Erkomaishvili was born in 1940. From his ancestors

Anzor inherited profound knowledge of folk music

and its performance traditions.

At the age of 5 Anzor already sang with his

father Davit, grandfather Artem and great grand-

father Gigo. From then on Anzor tirelessly seeks for

Georgian folk music examples, revives and promotes

them. Peoples Artist of Georgia Anzor Erkomaishvili

is the laureate of Shota Rustaveli, Iakob Gogebashvili,

Niko Berdzenishvili, Ekvtime Taqaishvili, Zakaria

Paliashvili and Albert Schweitzer Prizes.

He graduated from Tbilisi State Conser-

vatoire. Together with his friends Anzor founded

ensemble Gordela in 1961 and ensemble Rustavi

in 1968; with Rustavi he has been on concert tours

in many countries of the world as the artistic director.

Anzor has taught Georgian folk songs to many

16

foreigners and today Georgian folk music is performed

in the USA, France, Sweden, Japan, Israel, UK, Canada,

etc.

In 1976 Anzor founded boys ensemble Mart-

ve. Today the alumni of the ensemble direct their own

collectives.

In various archives of the world Anzor has found

over 500 audio recordings of Georgian folk songs made

in 1901-1930, released as LPs and CDs.

Anzor Erkomaishvili

During many years Anzor Erkomaishvili visited

all regions of Georgia, recorded unique examples of

national folk treasure from elderly singers, transcribed

and published them as collections. Most noteworthy

among them are: Transcriptions from Artem Erko-

maishvilis Repertoire, the catalogue of Georgian

songs recorded in 1901-1950 and the work Georgian

Folk Song. The First Sound recordings. 1901-1914

Anzor has published several interesting books:

Babua (Grandfather), Shavi Shashvi Chioda

(Black Thrush Said), Mival Guriashi Mara (I am

going to Guria, But) and others. He is also the author

of a number of interesting works and researches. For

more than 20 years he led popular series of television

program Mravalzhamier (aimed to safeguard and

promote Georgian folk song) on Georgian State tele-

vision.

In 2001-2006 Anzor was a member of UNESCO

Commission of Folklore; He prepared and presented the

project Chakrulo to UNESCO, which was proclaimed

a Masterpiece of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of

Humanity on 18 May, 2001.

In 2001 Anzor Erkomaishvili founded the Inter-

national Centre for Georgian Folk Song and has been its

Head ever since. He is a true beneficent of Georgian

folklore and an exemplary protector of family traditions.

The Erkomaishvilis performance is the result of

the co-existence of harmony and taste. Amazing unity

and simplicity of form and content determines their

distinguished place in Gurian music. It can easily be

said, that the family greatly contributed to national

folk treasure.

Prepared by Maka Khardziani (Material is taken from the book

Masters of Georgian Folk song. Guria, The

Erkomaishvilis, vol.II, Sakartvelos Matsne,

Tbilisi, 2004)

Foreigners on Georgian Folklore

Peter Gold

Georgian Folk Music from Turkey

Peter Gold

In the previous volume of the Bulletin we told

you about Peter Gold- American ethnomusicologist,

anthropologist and archaeologist, who first visited

Georgia 44 years ago. On Prof Grigol Chkhikvadzes

advice Prof. Gold organized an expedition in Turkey

in the summer, 1968; he visited Georgias historical

territories (Rize, Artvin), the village of Hairye (Inegol

District), as well as Istanbul where he recorded mostly

Laz and Acharan music; Laz instrumental pieces for

chiboni, Acharan solo and two-part songs and instru-

mental pieces on accordion.

Peter Gold recorded invaluable material: no

other material of the Georgians from Turkey was

recorded from then until the 1990s. This material was

released as a CD Georgian Folk Music from Turkey

17

(1968) with an extensive annotation including Peter

Golds historical-geographic, ethnographic and musical

data on the Georgians from Turkey.

Complete version of the annotation is available

on our web site www.polyphony.ge

Here presented are musical fragments of the

annotation.

Laz mountain musical tradition centers around

the tulum (bagpipe), meaning skin in Turkish. It shares

a common origin with the bagpipes of the Caucasus

(chiboni in West Georgia and gudastviri in East

Georgia). The tulum consists of a goatskin sac with a

blow tube projecting from the top, and at the bottom

there is a chanter made from two river reed pipes, with

finger stops. These pipes end in an animal horn bell

used to increase the resonance.

The Laz and Georgians are the only people

native to Asian Turkey who play the bagpipe. Unlike

the gajda played by Thracian Turks and most Balkan

peoples, the tulum is structurally unique to the

Caucasus. While the bagpipes of the Balkans and

Western Europe are capable of playing only drone

polyphony, the tulum can produce two independent,

mobile lines.

In the tulum style of the Laz, one chanter pipe

is used to play melody while the other frequently plays a

counterpoint consisting of two pitches: the tonic and the

minor seventh degree of the scale a full step below. The

durational values of these pitches are very short,

providing a melodic-percussive effect. At other times

the second voice will play in unison with the melody.

While the tulum is used primarily for instru-

mental accompaniment to the dance, at can also be

employed as an accompaniment to a vocal by the

musician performing on it. The instrumentalist /vocalist

fills the sac with air and brings the end of the blowpipe

to his cheek while he sings in order that none of the

precious air leaks out. In this manner, the sac retains

enough air to carry it through an entire vocal strophe

without the need of refilling. The result is a kind of

three-part polyphony consisting of the vocal part, one

chanter playing a variation of the melody, and

counterpoint played on the second chanter.

Hairiye has one tulum player. It can be

established that his style can be characterized as a

melodic line played over pedal tones. It differs from the

Laz tulum style in this respect and in its emphasis on the

harmonic intervals between the two lines. In general,

however, the similarity to Laz style is overwhelming,

and both may be placed within the general framework of

West Georgian bagpipe style, which is illustrated in the

recordings from Artvin.

European influence is evidenced by the use of

the standard accordion and the button accordion (known

as bayan in Russian) in the music of the Georgians and

the other Caucasian groups in Turkey: Circassians,

Abkhazians and Azeri Turks. One finds accordions for

sale in practically every music shop in the Marmara

Sea region. However, while the instrument itself, with

its tempered scale, is European, the music remains

basically Caucasian. Unlike much Russian accordion

music, which is in a major/minor tonality, this music is

more akin to the bagpipe style, where the

accompanying line consists of individual notes.

Accordion music is more subject to

European influence than is that of the bagpipe, which

it has all but eclipsed as the primary instrument used to

accompany the dance in the Caucasus. Many

accordion songs may be considered as pan-Caucasian

due to their widespread popularity, which transcends

ethnic and political boundaries.

One of the most widespread of musical

instruments is the double-reeded shawm, known to

Turkish and Georgian language speakers as the zurna,

which has counterparts ranging from China to Spain.

Zurna style in Georgia is distinguished from that of

Turkish and other Moslem cultures, as is the vocal

style, by its lack of profuse ornamental embellishment;

Zurna music in Artvin shows characteristics of both

cultures.

***

Horon is the distinctive dance of the Laz.

Performed by mountain and coastal Laz alike, there is

evidence to indicate a possible link with the Balkans

and Greece in the dance style and rhythm of the music.

The Laz have leg lifts which are encountered in

Bulgarian dance, and the name horon shares a

common root with the Greek, Bulgarian and Rumanian

words for the dance: choros, khoro and hora,

respectively.

Similarity to the Balkans lies in the use of

the asymmetric meter, which consists of short and

long pulses grouped in various combinations. 5/8

meter, common among the Laz and in Bulgaria, where

it is known as paidushko, consists of a short pulse (a

quarter note) followed by a longer one (a dotted

quarter) (2+3/8). Also found among the Laz (and in

Bulgaria, where it is known as ruchenitza) is the 7/8 or

7/16 meter. This consists of two short and one long

pulse. Horons are danced to music in this meter as

well.

While in the Balkans the progress of the

dance is controlled by a dance leader who is usually at

the lead of the line, Laz dancing is led by the

musician, either the tulum or kemenche (bowed lute of

the coastal people) player. He communicates his

instructions through shouted phrases such as Bozma

horoni (Dont spoil the dance!), Sallama kolini (Dont

shake your arm!), Deli kanli (Young man! (Literally

crazy blood) and Git ha, geri bas (Go ahead, step

back!).

http://www.polyphony.ge/

18

***

Two stylistic layers are present in the musical

repertoire of the Georgians: 1) the old Caucasian, and 2)

the exogenous style, showing European or Eastern

influence.

Old Caucasian musical style is best illustrated

in the vocal music. Unlike the surrounding Turkish folk

or popular music, Georgian vocal style is relatively

open-voiced, relaxed, and free of ornamental

embellishment. The Georgians and the Abkhazians are

only groups in the Caucasus to have developed vocal

polyphony to any great degree (It is also found among

Daghestanians and Ossetians). Isolated because of the

mountainous topography of the southern Caucasus, each

Georgian tribe or regional group developed its own style

of vocal polyphony. In the east of Georgia melismatic

melodies sung over long pedal tones are most common,

while in the west there are triadic chordal structures and

extreme linear polyphony. Among the Adcharians, two-,

three-, and (though extremely rare) four-part indigenous

polyphony are sung.

The former Shavshetians of Hayriye village

possess a repertoire of two-part vocal polyphony, which

may be classified according to the nature of the bass

line. The basso-ostinato is encountered in every regional

style in Georgia. In Hayriye it is most commonly

employed in the second parts to some songs (Pachvis

Singhera, Vosa Vorera), but it can also progress

throughout the entire length of the song (Nanina).

Many of the songs are executed by two

antiphonal choirs; that is, two soloists sing the upper

line, the melody (known as leksi), and are accompanied

by their respective choirs of three or more men singing

the bani, a bass line which consists of nonsense

syllables, such as he, ho, ha. Another form of group

singing employed is the leader-response style. The

soloist sings a short improvised phrase to which the

choir responds with a stock refrain (Tirini Horerama).

Unfortunately, most of these songs are on the

verge of disappearing. The causes for their decline are

manifold. It may be due to the impact of Turkicization

upon the young and the consequent lack of

comprehension of old symbols and customs. It may be

due to the impact of the mass media: radio and

phonograph records inundate every corner of Turkey

with Turkish style folk and popular music. And, finally,

as young people increasingly leave the village for work

in urban canters both inside Turkey and in foreign

countries, there will not be enough good singers on hand

to assure the continuance of the tradition. As the

situation presently exists, perhaps only Dedoplis

Simghera, which is associated with the marriage

ceremony, and the second section of Vosa Vorera, a

favorite dance song, will survive the old men who now

sing them.

The texts to most of these songs are

interchangeable depending upon the memory or whim

the soloist. Because the bass line is always sung using

nonsense syllables, no coordination with the poetic

(melodic) line is necessary. Thus, the choral music is,

at once, highly democratic in that any good singer

might join in on the bass part, and artistically

demanding in that only certain individuals possess the

qualification to sing the solo line.

Women in Hayriye village have a separate

musical tradition. Unlike the mens songs, their group

songs are not polyphonic. Their repertoire consists of

dance songs, some sung a capella and some

accompanied by accordion, and specialized songs for

particular social uses such as laments for the dead. The

texts of such songs often remain the same regardless

of the identity of the deceased. The only alteration

consists of a change in appellation, such as: chemo

dzmav (oh my brother), chemo dedav (oh my mother),

etc. The short-phrased strophes and descending

contour lines are typical of Georgian laments.

Male solo songs tend to be in the lyrical-love

song genre. In these songs we find a suggestion of the

city style of Georgian folk music, a music which was

influenced by Persian, Armenian and Turkish cultures

from the seventeenth century until the end of the

nineteenth century. The mode of these songs is never

encountered in the old Caucasian style, but it is quite

common in many Eastern music. The texts of the

songs show a good deal of Turkish admixture.

19

Centres of Georgian Culture and Science

Simon Janashia National Museum

of Georgia

The history of the Museum starts on 22 May, 1852. Initially this was the Museum of the Caucasian

Department of the Russian Imperial Geographical

Society. The Museum evolved on Gustav Raddes

initiative in 1865. He organized the first exhibition in

1867 and took active part in the World Congress of

Archaeologists in 1881.

In 1919 the Museum was renamed into the

Museum of Georgia. In 1921 it was subordinated to the

Peoples Education Commissariat of Georgian SSR. In

1941 on the inception of the Georgian Academy of

Sciences it became a part of the system. In 1947 the

Museum was named after academician Simon Janashia.

The Museum was constructed in Rustaveli Avenue in

1913-1929 (by architect G. Neprintsev, faade archi-

tecture by N.Severov the best example of Georgian

architecture of the time.). This central museum

Georgian History and Nature, is also a scientific-

research and educational institution. It encompasses

humanitarian (archaeology, history, ethnography, nu-

mismatics) and nature (geology, botany, zoology)

branches. The Museum collections include numerous

first-rate exhibits of nature and material culture of

Georgia, the Caucasus and near East. The collections of

the Museum included 1006520 exhibits by 31 De-

cember, 1984. Its Funds consist of rich archaeological

collections from ancient times until the 4th century A.D.,

Middle Ages (5th -18

th centuries), exhibits of city life

and material culture (1801-1921), those reflecting

industry, agriculture and revolutionary activity, Soviet

time and contemporary achievements, ancient traditions

and 19th century ethnographic collections, rich numis-

matic material, big funds of geology, botany and

zoology, including unique monuments: ancient things of

precious metal from burial grounds in Kakheti (3rd

millennium B.C), renowned II millennium B.C. golden

and silver bowls and other things from Trialety

Burrows.

Jewelry from Vani, Akhalgori, Algeti burial

grounds (VI-IV centuries B.C.), golden adornments

testifying to highly developed goldsmithry from

Mtskheta, Armaztsikhe, Armaziskhevi, Zghuderi,

Kldeeti, etc, rich glyptic material and rare collection of

Urartian graphics (VII- VIII centuries, B.C.),

Vespasians inscription (1st century A.D.), The

Bilingual inscription from Armazi (2nd

century A.D.),

ancient Georgian inscription from Bolnisi Sioni (5th

century A.D.), mosaic from Shukhuti (4th -5

th centuries

A.D.), a collection of wooden doors, the rarest

example from the Chukuli Church (11th century),

Dmanisi collection of silver adornments (12th c.), a

collection of metal ware including copper plates with

the inscriptions of King Vakhtang VI, King Bakar,

Princess Tekla (18th c.) and a plate with the

inscription: I belong to Giorgi and Shioshi

Saakadzes (17th c.), the bowl with the inscription of

King Erekle II, his gun and sabre, the guns of Bakar

and King Solomon II, etc.

Chased Silver bowl from Trialeti with ritual

round-dance (II millennium B.C.)

Ethnographic materials ploughing instru-

ments, most distinguished of which is Big Georgian

plough, ceramics from all centres of production,

silver things and arms made by Georgian masters,

rarest collection of costumes of the Georgians and

other Caucasian peoples, oriental weapons, etc.

Richest collection of Georgian coins, including the

rarest golden stater of Colchian King Ake (3rd

millennium B.C.), Lasha-Giorgis copper coin (13th

century), Roman silver coin collections from the

village of Eki (907 pieces), a collection of King

Tamars copper coins from the village of Vejini (2759

pieces), etc. Geological Funds the remnant of the ape

20

first found in the Soviet Union, skeleton of an elephant

from the village of Taribana, originals of invertebrate

fauna, typical forms and herbarium from other regions

and countries, including significant part from the

collections of the 19th century researchers of Caucasian

flora, primarily described examples of many species-

nomenclature types and other collections from various

groups, including endemics, relicts, rare and extinct

animal species.

Most interesting for ethnomusicologists is the

silver bowl from Trialeti, with the scene of cult ritual

round-dance, testifying to the existence of this genre and

the antiquity of round-dance performance in Georgia in

the 2nd

millennium B.C.

Mindia Jalabadze Head of the

Archaeological Department of the Museum

Also, ancient musical instrument tsintsila a

prototype of modern day cymbals made of bronze

dating back to the 2nd

millennium B.C. According to

Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani tsintsila had pleasant sound,

and was used to accompany church hymns, as a symbol

of heavenly sounds, and also during feasts, various

festive occasions of high social circles and at the end of

mourning, some scholars even suppose, that tsintsila

was used for whooping at the battlefield. Tsintsila

belongs to the group of musical instruments which has

been lost. Mindia Jalabadze Head of the Museums

Archaeological Department, allowed us to take this

photo; for which we are very grateful.

Mindia Jalabadze helped us get in touch with

Vera Chikhladze researcher of musical instruments

unearthed by archaeological excavations; who is the

author of a special work on old musical instruments

ready for publication.

Tsintsila from Zhinvali burial grounds

(3rd

- 4th

centuries A.D.)

Few Georgian scholars have studied these

instruments. Tsintsila was found in different parts of

Georgia. It was considered as rattling (O. Chijavadze),

tinkling (I. Javkhishvili), sound-making, percussion

idiophone (M. Shilakadze).

Alongside tsintsila the Museum collections

include another tinkling instrument, encountered

among many peoples of the world; its function is

mostly to frighten evil spirits; such rattle was often

used to emphasize dance rhythm. It could also be a

prototype of todays childrens rattle toy, with which

children would frighten evil spirits. As Jalabadze told

us this clay rattle counts at least 28 centuries.

Rattle, found in the village of Bukhurcha /Samegrelo

about 8th

-7th

centuries B.C.

In 2011, after the completion of repairs and

rehabilitation works, some the Museum halls were

opened for visitors. Currently the Museum holds

1 200 000 exhibits.

At the renewed Museum there is a permanent

exhibition Archaeological Treasure as well as other

temporary exhibitions.

The Museums Web Site is www.museum.ge

Prepared by Ketevan Baiashvili

and Maka Khardziani

http://www.museum.ge/

21

One foreign folk ensemble

Ensemble Darbazi from Canada

What started almost twenty years ago as a bi-

monthly living room gathering to sing strange poly-

phonic songs from some distant post-Soviet republic has

transformed into an unexplainable passion for the 12

singers who currently represent the choir. Darbazi, a

community choir consisting of professional and

hobbyist musicians as well as others just moved to sing,

has encountered a number of interesting twist and turns

along the way. What defines the choir and its direction,

however, is this enigmatic drive to not just sing

Georgian polyphony but to experience it.

Under the initiation of Alan Gasser, a Toronto-

based member of the US trio Kavkasia, Darbazi started

in 1995 as simply an opportunity for Gasser to sing

Georgian music while he was away from his beloved

Kavkasia. Darbazi soon grew into a real choir with

regular weekly rehearsals and performances all over

Ontario as well as Montreal, Quebec and St. Johns,

Newfoundland. It was instrumental, however, that a

small contingent of the group went to Georgia in 1997,

to realize the profundity of Georgian hospitality and feel

the music as a part of this broader cultural expression. A

little over a year later, a trio from the Anchiskhati Choir

(Malkhaz Erkvanidze, Dato Shughliashvili and Zaza

Tsereteli) nurtured this feeling further with their spirited

singing and teaching abilities that remarkably trans-

formed moments in Toronto into authentic Georgian

experiences.

Ensemble Darbazi at the VI International Symposium

Rather serendipitously, less than a year later,

Darabzi stumbled upon a group of six Georgian singers

from the Rustavi-based choir Hereti, who were staying

in Toronto while they considered immigrating to

Canada. Hereti and Darbazi spent lots of time together,

initially communicating through song since neither

Darbazi nor Hereti members had sufficient skills in the

others language. Predictably, they found many

opportunities to sing at weddings, New Years

celebrations, family gatherings, and a number of con-

certs; however, this Georgian-Canadian collaboration

soon passed since not all the Georgians stayed in

Toronto. Yet a very significant long-term development

resulted: one member of Hereti, Shalva Makharashvili,

not only stayed in Toronto but took over artistic

directorship of Darbazi when Gasser left the group in

2003. Markhashvilis leadership provides a closeness

to the Georgian temperament that arguably navigates

Darbazis realism and authenticity when singing

Georgian songs.

Ensemble Darbazi

Something must also be said about the

geographical positioning of Canada in relation to the

homeland, which makes travel to and from Georgia so

difficult. Almost every member of the choir has spent

time in Georgia, listening to and studying from

Georgian singers. More often than not, however, only

a few members can afford to travel to Georgia at a

given time. Upon their return, new songs learned are

shared through stories as well as through collectively

listening to field recordings guided by the travellers as

well as Makharashvili. This is a common process for

all songs Darbazi studies and performs. Even when

they use transcriptions, songs are supplemented by

stories, oral variations and collective listening to Ge-

orgian recordings.

Interestingly, while being commended by

Georgian traditional singers and ethnomusicologists in

Georgia, Darbazi receives little support from the

Toronto Georgian community. Nonetheless, Darbazi

seems to have established itself as a choral presence in

Toronto. In 2008 they won semi-finalist prize in the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporations Amateur Choral

Competition (Pan Cultural Traditions) and are in-

volved in more and more collaborations with estab-

lished choral and instrumental groups, such as those

with the Shevchenko Ukrainian Ensemble (2007,

2012), VIVA! Youth Choir (2011), The University of

Toronto Vocal Jazz Ensemble (2012), Aradia Early

Music Ensemble (2012), and the SING! Festival

(2012, 2013). Although it gives them great pleasure

and pride to share Georgian polyphony with new

audiences, Darbazis desire and motivation are always

22

to return to the motherland. Thank you so much, Ge-

orgia!.

Andrea Kuzmich

The member of Darbazi

Old Press Pages

I Could not Have Lived

Without this Song (Excerpt from the article)

Kakhi Rosebashvili When I was a student my friend and I went from village to village with a phonograph and recorded folk

songs. We visited all parts of Georgia; people laughed at

us saying you have nothing else to do. When I was

young it was blamable to be a folklorist, but it has

become fashionable and prestigious lately. folk

singing is heard everywhere on the stage, radio and

television many folk ensembles are created; there is

hardly any institution without such ensemble. Though it

is a pity that of them have almost same repertoire; they

sing Kviria, Kakhuri Shemodzakhili, Shen, Bicho

Anagurelo, Tsintsqaro, Khasanbegura, Odoia

I call these commercial songs. They are performed as

Georgian folk examples. But I can convincingly say and

prove that none of them is a folk song; they all have

authors. In 1958-1960 I walked throughout Samegrelo;

nobody sings Odoia there, they sing Tokhnuri,

Oqonuri. Not a single peasant in Georgia sings

Shen Bicho Anagurelo this is a piece created by

Vano Mchedlishvili (a renowned Kakhetian singer) on

folk motives. Neither Tsintsqaro is sung anywhere

in Kakheti. People know the song from the radio and

television. The variant of Kviria, sung by our

ensembles, was created by Ilia Paliani and has nothing

to do with real Svan Kviria. These songs have done

their best. Now it is time to take care of the true nest

of Georgian folk songs, which, fortunately, has

survived to this day. They should urgently be recorded

and transcribed...

IT is important, that folk songs should be

performed in a true folk manner. Our folk music is

characterized in pure tuning- deviation from modern

(tempered) tuning. C indicated in the transcription is

not C in fact, but a note slightly higher between C and

C sharp. This is how our ancestors sang, and we

should sing the same way.

Georgian song is fairly chamber, with the

exception of pompous songs such as Mravalzhamier

and Groomsmens songs. Even Kakhetian Supruli

was sung by two soloist and three bases from olden

times. Sadly, we cannot demand chamber performance

from ensembles and choirs consisting of 40, 80 or 100

singers. Such ensembles copy the songs, devo